The mission of the Victoria Symphony is:
To enrich lives through the shared experience of extraordinary music.
Below are the people on stage and behind the scenes that bring extraordinary music to life.
Music Director - Maestro Christian Kluxen
Christian Kluxen is Music Director of the Victoria Symphony in Canada and Chief Conductor of the Arctic Philharmonic in Norway. Born in Copenhagen in 1981 to Danish-German parents, he has a natural affinity towards the Germanic and Scandinavian repertoire, particularly the works of Beethoven, Brahms, Richard Strauss, Nielsen and Sibelius, and he has been lauded for his bold, imaginative and energetic interpretations of this repertoire.
During the 14/15 season, Christian held the Dudamel Fellowship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, acting as assistant conductor to Gustavo Dudamel and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Prior to this appointment he was Assistant Conductor at the Royal Scottish National Orchestra from 2010 to 2013.
He has worked with orchestras such as the Philharmonia Orchestra, London
Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Manchester Camerata, Royal Northern Sinfonia, RTÉ National Symphony, Ulster Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony, Norrköping Symphony, Malmö Symphony, Iceland Symphony, Trondheim Symphony, Kristiansand Symphony, Strasbourg Philharmonic, Netherlands Philharmonic, Transylvanian State Philharmonic and in Australasia with the Auckland Philharmonia and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.
In his home country, Christian enjoys close relationships with several orchestras, including the Copenhagen Philharmonic and Odense Symphony, and in May 2019 he stepped in at short notice for concerts with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, replacing Yuri Temirkanov in concerts broadcast live on Danish National Radio.
The current season sees debuts with the Oregon Symphony, Bremer Philharmoniker, Munich Chamber Orchestra, the Norrlandsoperan symphony orchestra, National Youth Orchestras of Scotland, and a return engagement with the Turku Philharmonic.
On the operatic stage, Christian has conducted extensive tours of Don Giovanni and Madama Butterfly with the Danish National Opera, and has made his Berlin debut conducting Die Zauberflöte at Komische Oper. He led highly successful performances of Die Fledermaus with Aarhus Symphony Orchestra and Ariadne auf Naxos with Arctic Opera and Philharmonic in 2017. Following celebrated performances of Carmen at Opera Hedeland in summer 2019, he reprises Bizet’s masterpiece in Norway with Arctic Opera and Philharmonic.
Christian’s concerts have been broadcast live in Denmark, the UK, Sweden, Norway and Canada. He has received several prestigious awards and prizes, and in 2016 he was nominated by the International Opera Awards as “Young Conductor of the Year”.
**This biography is provided by Hazard Chase.
Christian Kluxen is the 10th Music Director in the History of the Victoria Symphony, following:
Melvin Knudsen (1941-1948)
Hans Gruber (1948-1964)
Otto Werner Mueller (1964-1967)
Laszlo Gati (1967-1978)
Paul Freeman (1979-1988)
Peter McCoppin (1989-1999)
Kees Bakels (1999-2001)
Timothy Vernon Interim Music Director (2001-2003)
Tania Miller (2003-2017)
Music Director Emerita - Maestra Tania Miller
In 2016-2017 marked Tania Miller’s 14th and final season as Music Director of the Victoria Symphony in a position that she has occupied with distinction and acclaim. She has been a driving force behind new growth, innovation and quality for the Victoria Symphony, and has gained a national reputation as a highly effective advocate and communicator for the arts. As curator, she has distinguished herself in Canada as a visionary leader and innovator.
On the podium, Maestra Miller projects authority, dynamism and sheer love of the experience of making music. As one critic put it, she delivers “a calm intensity . . . expressive, colourful and full of life . . . her experience and charisma are audible” Others call her performances “technically immaculate, vivid and stirring”.
Recently celebrating the orchestra’s 75th anniversary in the 2015-2016 season, Tania Miller brought the Victoria Symphony on its first National tour with performances in Quebec City, Toronto, Ottawa, and Vancouver in concerts that were noted for their boldness, unified spirit and expressive vibrancy. Curating a season which included special guests Yo-Yo Ma, Yannick Nezet-Seguin, and a host of extraordinary artists taking part in special festivals and events, Miller showcased the orchestra and brought them once again to new heights.
Tania Miller has appeared as a guest conductor in Canada, the United States and Europe with such orchestras as the Toronto Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Bern Symphony Orchestra (Switzerland), Oregon Symphony, National Arts Centre Orchestra (Ottawa), Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Louisiana Philharmonic, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Naples Philharmonic, Hartford Symphony, and Wroclaw Philharmonic (Poland) among others and looks toward an upcoming debut with the Chicago Symphony.
Maestra Miller’s early passion was opera; she conducted numerous productions for Michigan Opera Works in Ann Arbor (where she served as Artistic Director) and Opera McGill in Montréal. She obtained her doctoral and master’s degrees in conducting from the University of Michigan.
Miller received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Royal Roads University in Victoria in recognition of her exemplary work as a leader and for her extraordinary artistic achievements in the community. In addition she was a recent recipient of the Paul Harris Award from the Rotary Foundation for her community leadership. Canada’s Royal Conservatory of Music bestowed her with an Honorary Diploma for her impact on Canadian music in 2015.
Tania lives in Vancouver with her husband and two boys (8 and 10).
What the media has to say
“It was wonderful to hear this dark, lovely, somber work reclaimed by such a masterly performance by the VSO, led by Tania Miller, and what a gift she is to the city’s orchestra. She has absolute authority over the score, clarifying its dense textures, her long term thoughts giving it the shape it needs and bringing out every detail, its variety, its delicious orientalisms, the ravishments of the slow movement. She has the gift of disappearing into the music, the sign of a true conductor. It was 45 minutes of bliss.”
– Vancouver Sun
“…the audience called Tania Miller back for two encores, the second becoming a standing ovation. She had earlier complemented the SSO on a grand week together. The feeling should be mutual as Miller’s passionate, poetic, and highly articulate conducting was certainly a treat for the audience.”
– Saskatoon Star Phoenix
“From the resonant opening chord to the tumultuous closing bars Miller directed a reading which seldom, if ever, put a foot wrong. ”
– Victoria Times Colonist
Interesting facts
The female equivalent of the male appellation “Maestro” in Italian is “Maestra”.
Principal Pops Conductor - Sean O’Loughlin
Read Sean’s biography here.
Associate Conductor - Giuseppe Pietraroia
Read Giuseppe’s biography here.
Composer in Residence - Marcus Goddard
Read Marcus’ biography here.
Musicians of the VS
The Victoria Symphony is made up of a diverse group of Canadian and international musicians. For a complete listing of our orchestra members, click here.
Board of Directors
Victoria Symphony Society Board of Directors
Alan Hollingworth, President
Katherine Bishop
Paul Beauchesne
Brian Butler
Wendy Clay
Kay Cochran
Joanie Hesketh
Peter Jando
John McLeod
Valerie Raymond
Sheridan Scott
Thomas Siemens
Michael Warren
Moses Watson
Honorary Life Members:
Brian Butler
Dr. Eric Charman, CM, OBC
Jill Gibson
Marsha Hanen
Sandra Lackenbauer
John McEown
C. Stephen Smith
Wayne Strandlund
Harry Swain
In Memoriam:
Hugh Davidson
Neville Gibson
Staff Contacts
Box Office (Tickets, packages, schedule inquiries)
250.385.6515
Mailing Address
Victoria Symphony Society
620 View Street, Suite 610
Staff
Kathryn Laurin, CEO
250.412.1981
[email protected]
Jennifer Paget, Director of Finance
250.412.1984
[email protected]
Jill Smillie, Director of Marketing
250.412.1986
[email protected]
Lorraine Tanner, Director of Development
250.412.1980
[email protected]
Colleen Youngblut, Senior Development Officer, Foundation
250.412.1985
[email protected]
Shandra Liss, Senior Marketing Officer
250.412.2658
[email protected]
Emily Boon, Senior Executive Officer
250.412.1978
[email protected]
Allegra Bonifacio, Development Coordinator
250.412.1982
[email protected]
Maria Martins, Education & Outreach Coordinator
250.412.1977
[email protected]
Bill Linwood, Artistic Administrator
[email protected]
Bailey Finley, Box Office Coordinator
250.385.6515
[email protected]
Production Staff
Peter Burris, Orchestra Manager
250.412.1974
[email protected]
Christopher Reiche Boucher, Librarian
[email protected]
Russell Bajer, Associate Librarian
[email protected]
